By Kaitlin Sinclair, Staff Writer
“Law and Order: Special Victims Unit” has been on the air since 1999. It is the fourth longest running primetime scripted series. “Special Victims Unit” (SVU) is the branch of the “Law and Order” franchise that focuses on crimes such as rape, domestic violence, child abuse and more.
The main duo on the show for 12 years were detectives Olivia Benson and Elliot Stabler (played by Mariska Hargitay and Chris Meloni).
Chris Meloni departed the show after the season 12 finale and was never seen again. It was said that there were issues regarding Meloni’s contract that were never resolved. Elliot and Olivia were partners on the job and understood each other better than anyone else.
The current cast of SVU consists of Olivia Benson (Hargitay), Amanda Rollins (Kelli Giddish), Fin Tutuola (Ice-T), Kat Tamin (Jamie Gray Hyder), Dominick Carisi (Peter Scanavino), and Deputy Chief Garland (Demore Barnes). The SVU cast has changed throughout the years, and Hargitay is the only current cast member to have been on the show since the first episode 22 years ago.
Conversations on Twitter over the past year have speculated Stabler’s return.
In March of 2020, it was announced that Chris Meloni (Stabler) was coming back to Law and Order.
Meloni’s spinoff show, “Law and Order: Organized Crime,” is premiering April 1 along with SVU in a crossover episode. NBC.com’s synopsis for the show is “starting over where it all began, detective Elliot Stabler (Christopher Meloni) rejoins the ranks to take on New York’s most devious crime syndicate with a new task force. After a devastating loss that rocks him to his core, Stabler must rebuild his life and career in an evolving criminal justice system, facing his past and working to make things right.”
“Law and Order: Organized Crime” deals with networks who engage in illegal activity such as human trafficking, armed robbery and assault. Law and Order SVU and OC will be operating under two different premises.
The last SVU episode, “The Only Way Out Is Through,” Olivia is revisited by an old case that shakes her to the core. This episode focuses on three women confronting their abusers and getting the justice they deserve.
Towards the end of the episode, Olivia and Fin are having a conversation in Olivia’s office. Olivia has won an award for NYPD women in law enforcement. There is an event where she has to make a speech but is unsure whether or not she wants to go. Fin tells her that she deserves the award and ends with “you never know who might show up.” From what audience members know, Stabler is coming home.
sinclak18@bonaventure.edu
